1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a novel vehicular headlamp and, in particular, to the art of simplifying the molding dies and reducing the cost by engineering the shape of reflectors for vehicular headlamps which are formed of synthetic resin materials.
2. Description of the Related Art
A so-called reflector-mobile vehicular headlamp is equipped with two mobile supports and one stationary support in order to support the reflector in relation to the lamp body in a tiltable manner. At each support the reflector and the lamp body are linked through an individual link member.
FIGS. 3 and 4 illustrate one example of such conventional vehicular headlamps.
A vehicular headlamp a comprises a lamp body b, a reflector c made of a synthetic resin which may be supported in relation to the lamp body b in a tiltable manner, and a front lens d for covering the front opening of the lamp body b. The reflector c may be supported in relation to the lamp body b at three points, one of which is formed as a stationary support A and the other two of which are formed as mobile supports B and B.
The lamp body b has a recess e open in front and has a throughhole g formed through the rear wall f of the lamp body b at the center.
A boss h is protrusively provided on the inner surface of the rear wall f at one corner (upper right hand as viewed from the front) thereof. The boss h has an attached fulcrum axis j, on which a ball i is formed at the front end thereof. Support holes k and k are formed at two appropriately spaced locations respectively down and aside (to the left as viewed from the front) the boss h, into which aiming screws 1 and 1 may be supported in a rotatable but not axially displaceable manner.
The reflector c has a concave m open in front, which has a reflective inner surface, which in turn has a throughhole n for a light bulb formed at the center.
In addition, an attachment o is formed, protruding rearward, on the rear face of the reflector c at one corner (upper right hand as viewed from the front) thereof, at a location coinciding with the boss h. The attachment o is approximately in the shape of a prism with one side thereof open and the rear end closed and has a round attachment hole q through the rear wall p. The rear wall p of the attachment o is formed at a location lapped with the concave m of the reflector c as viewed from the blanking direction during molding of the reflector c. The attachment hole q supports a receptacle s having a spherical concave r open at the rear end.
Attachments t and t are formed, protruding rearward, at two locations (coinciding with the support holes k and k of the aiming screws 1 and 1) respectively down and aside (to the left as viewed from the front) the attachment o. These attachments t and t, like the above attachment o, are approximately in the shape of a prism with one side thereof open and the rear end closed and have rectangular attachment holes v and v through the rear walls u and u. The rear wall u of each attachment t is formed at a location lapped with the concave m of the reflector c as viewed from the blanking direction during molding of the reflector c. The attachment holes v and v may support aiming nuts w and w respectively.
As such, the ball i of the fulcrum axis j which may be supported in the boss h attached to the lamp body b will be fitted into the spherical concave r of the receptacle s which may be attached to the attachment o of the reflector c to form the stationary support A, while the aiming screws 1 and 1 of the lamp body c will be screwed into the aiming nuts w and w which may be attached to the attachments t and t of the reflector c to form the mobile supports B and B, so that the reflector c may be supported in relation to the lamp body c in a tiltable manner.
Such a conventional vehicular headlamp as described above suffers from a disadvantage that because the attachments o, t and t of the reflector c have rear walls p, u and u which are in the shape of a prism lapped with the concave m of the reflector c as viewed from the blanking direction, a so-called slider will be necessary for a molding die during molding of the reflector c in order to form the attachments o, t and t integrally as part of the reflector c, thus complicating the molding die and increasing the cost.
In addition, formation of such protrusions as the attachments o, t and t on the back side of the reflective surface of the reflector c is disadvantageous because they tend to cause xe2x80x98sink marksxe2x80x99 on the side of the reflective surface of the completed molded piece, impairing the efficiency of reflection. This disadvantage has been particularly serious in recent years when, along with the use of plain front lenses, a desired optical divergence may be formed only through a reflective surface.
It is therefore the objective of the present invention to simplify the molding dies for reflectors of vehicular headlamps to be formed of synthetic resin materials in order to reduce the cost and prevent the decrease in the efficiency of reflection of the reflective surfaces.
In order to solve the above disadvantages, according to the vehicular headlamp of the present invention, at least one of the link members linking the lamp body with a reflector may be supported by an attachment piece which is formed integrally with and protrudes outward from the location where the opening periphery of the reflective surface of the reflector lies as viewed from the blanking direction during molding of the reflector.
According to the vehicular headlamp of the present invention, therefore, since the attachment pieces of the reflector for supporting the link members are formed integrally with and protrude outward from the location where the opening periphery lies as viewed from the blanking direction of the reflector, these attachment pieces can be molded integrally with the reflector as the part thereof using a molding die which requires no slider.
The vehicular headlamp according to the present invention will hereinafter be described in detail with reference to the illustrated embodiment.
Other aspects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, illustrating by way of example the principles of the invention.